Chapter 1

In the Canglan Continent, if one wishes to become a warrior, they must awaken their own martial soul. Only through the martial soul can one communicate with heaven and earth, absorb spiritual energy, and cultivate.

Martial souls come in a wide variety of types, countless and diverse, divided into four major grades: Heaven, Earth, Mystic, and Yellow. Each grade is further divided into ten ranks.

The higher the grade of the martial soul, the faster the cultivation speed, the greater the abilities and potential, and the higher the hope of achieving greatness in the future.

At this moment, in the Luohe Kingdom, Linshui City, the Qin family was holding a martial soul awakening ceremony.

On a pitch-black altar, a handsome disciple with a proud expression sat cross-legged. Below the altar, the major disciples and elders of the Qin family were gathered.

This disciple was named Qin Changkong, the son of the Qin family's chief elder, and he was a genius disciple in the Qin family, second only to the young master, Qin Nan.

Because of this, the disciples and elders from all directions had a look of anticipation on their faces.

At this moment, the black altar began to operate, emitting strands of white light, like a dream, as if transforming into ethereal serpents that drilled into Qin Changkong's body, visible to the naked eye, circulating continuously within him.

Roar!

Suddenly, a mighty and awe-inspiring roar echoed from within Qin Changkong's body.

Behind Qin Changkong's body, strands of yellow light immediately appeared, and when five strands of yellow light had fully emerged, a massive and ferocious white tiger shadow rose, like the king of beasts descending, emitting a fierce and powerful aura.

All the elders and disciples in the hall felt a tremendous pressure at this moment.

"This is..." The elder presiding over the ceremony, after being stunned, immediately reacted, his expression filled with excitement as he shouted, "Five strands of yellow light! Five strands of yellow light! This is a Yellow Grade Five martial soul! A Yellow Grade Five beast martial soul!"

These words were like a thunderbolt, thrown into the crowd, causing the faces of all the disciples and elders to change.

"What? A Yellow Grade Five martial soul?"

"Heaven, our Qin family has produced a top genius this time!"

"..."

Everyone's faces were filled with intense shock, completely unexpected by this result.

It should be known that a Yellow Grade Five martial soul, in the entire Linshui City, is considered a top genius, rarely appearing once in three years. Moreover, anyone with a martial soul of Yellow Grade Five or higher has boundless potential and great future achievements.

They had originally thought that Qin Changkong could at most awaken a Yellow Grade Four martial soul.

Qin Changkong's face showed a look of wild joy; he had never expected to awaken a Yellow Grade Five martial soul.

Seeing the shocked gazes of all the disciples and elders, a strong sense of pride welled up in Qin Changkong's heart. His gaze swept across the crowd and landed on a disciple with an ordinary appearance, his eyes filled with challenge.

This disciple was none other than the current young master of the Qin family, the number one genius, Qin Nan.

"Alright, next, Qin Nan!" The presiding elder quickly reacted, immediately calling out, his eyes filled with intense anticipation.

Since a top genius like Qin Changkong had already appeared, with Qin Nan's talent, the martial soul he would awaken would certainly not be inferior to Qin Changkong.

If that were the case, with two top geniuses, the future development of the Qin family would be extraordinary.

Sure enough, when the presiding elder called out this name, the shocked disciples and elders all turned their gazes to the ordinary-looking young man, their eyes filled with even more intense anticipation, surpassing the previous level of excitement for Qin Changkong.

Qin Nan was not only a legend in the Qin family but also in Linshui City.

Qin Nan, the son of the Qin family's patriarch, had started studying literature at the age of six, moved the entire Linshui City with his literary talent at eight, abandoned literature for martial arts at nine, practiced boxing at ten, hunted tigers bare-handed at eleven, learned swordsmanship at twelve, mastered ten martial techniques at thirteen, was struck by lightning at fourteen without injury, and created a middle-grade martial technique at sixteen, causing a sensation in Linshui City.

A warrior who had reached the 'Warrior King' level, upon hearing Qin Nan's achievements, immediately declared, "The talent this child displays is extraordinary. The martial soul he will awaken will certainly be Yellow Grade Five, or even surpass Yellow Grade Five. His future achievements will be extraordinary."

The words of the Warrior King had a significant impact, and Qin Nan was already hailed as the number one genius in Linshui City even before he had awakened his martial soul.

Qin Nan, dressed in a black robe, with slightly pale skin, looked as if he had just recovered from a serious illness. Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, his expression was very calm, neither proud nor impatient, as he walked to the altar.

"Finally, the day has come..."

Qin Nan muttered to himself, took a deep breath, ignored the gazes of the crowd, and sat cross-legged, closing his eyes.

From the altar below, strands of white light immediately floated up, continuously drilling into Qin Nan's body.

At this moment, the surrounding disciples and elders, seeing Qin Nan enter the state, immediately became agitated.

"I have a feeling that the martial soul Young Master Qin Nan will awaken will be extraordinary!"

"Yes, Young Master Qin Changkong awakened a Yellow Grade Five martial soul, and Young Master Qin Nan's talent surpasses his, so it will certainly be even higher!"

"Phew, a martial soul surpassing Yellow Grade Five, our Qin family has never had one in history."

"Everyone, be quiet, don't disturb Young Master Qin Nan. If anything goes wrong, can you all take the responsibility?"

"..."

The atmosphere in the hall was incredibly heated. Besides the admiration of the younger generation of disciples, even the elders were full of praise and intense anticipation.

However, seeing this scene, the joy and pride Qin Changkong had felt upon awakening a Yellow Grade Five martial soul were instantly washed away, and his face turned extremely ugly.

"Hmph, the martial soul is determined by heaven; everything else doesn't count." Qin Changkong said coldly, "Do you really think a Yellow Grade Five martial soul is something that can be awakened at will? Don't be surprised if Young Master Qin Nan only awakens a Yellow Grade Two martial soul!"

When he said this, the gazes of the surrounding disciples and elders turned to him with a hint of disdain.

However, these disciples and elders did not say anything, as Qin Changkong, now a genius with a Yellow Grade Five martial soul, held a significant status.

Seeing the disdainful gazes of the crowd, despite his extreme displeasure, Qin Changkong's mind also calmed down. Qin Nan's talent from a young age was evident, even astonishing a Warrior King. The martial soul he would awaken could not possibly be a Yellow Grade Three martial soul.

Thinking of this, Qin Changkong's eyes fixed on the altar.

"Qin Nan, you must awaken a martial soul lower than Yellow Grade Five, at the very least, you cannot awaken a martial soul surpassing Yellow Grade Five..."

Qin Changkong couldn't help but curse in his heart.

At this moment, more and more white light floated up from the altar.

Sitting cross-legged on the altar, Qin Nan's face turned slightly red under the baptism of the white light. From his slightly frail body, a sharp and resonant sound echoed.

The entire hall's breathing almost stopped simultaneously!

With a loud 'boom,' a strand of yellow light suddenly rose from within Qin Nan's body. Under the tense gazes of the crowd, this strand of yellow light rose and then stopped, followed by a large flaming sword slowly appearing in the yellow light.

Almost instantly, the entire hall of disciples and elders froze.

One strand of yellow light? A Yellow Grade One martial soul? The lowest grade martial soul? How could this be?

Even Qin Changkong, who had been cursing non-stop, was filled with shock and astonishment, as he never expected the number one genius of Linshui City to awaken only a Yellow Grade One martial soul, the lowest and most worthless martial soul!

Qin Nan, sitting cross-legged on the altar, slowly opened his eyes, taking in the stunned expressions of everyone in the hall.

"Flame Blade, a Yellow Grade One martial soul..."

Qin Nan muttered to himself. With a thought, he retracted the Flame Blade floating behind him into his body. He did not show any sadness or despair at awakening a worthless martial soul; instead, a hint of joy flashed in his eyes, which he quickly concealed.